Recruiting 101 – The Basics

As the parent of a high school student-athlete who wants to continue to play his/her sport at the collegiate level, the college athletic recruiting process can be a daunting and sometimes confusing undertaking. If your son or daughter has the potential to play his/her sport at the collegiate level he/she has an opportunity to leverage those athletic abilities to gain an advantage in the college admissions and financial aid process. To maximize this advantage you must take control of the process and, together with your son or daughter (the “student athlete”), develop a plan that addresses the following questions:

• Have we made a list of colleges/universities that my student athlete would like to attend? Do we know what criteria we will use to make this list? Would my student athlete be happy attending these schools even if the student athlete could not play a sport?
• Do we understand all the rules that govern the college athletic recruiting process? Do we know the differences in recruiting rules and scholarship opportunities between Divisions I, II, and III? Do we know when and how college coaches can contact me or my student athlete?
• Have we made a realistic assessment of student athlete’s skill level and are we looking at schools and sports programs consistent with that level of ability? Has my student athlete decided whether he or she wants to attend a school where the student athlete has the opportunity to receive significant playing time starting early in his/her career, or is he/she satisfied with limited playing time?
• Have I developed a financial plan that minimizes my EFC (Estimated Family Contribution) and maximizes my opportunity to receive need based financial aid or subsidized loans? Do I have a plan to pay for the portion of college costs not covered by financial aid that will not jeopardize my family’s financial future?
• Is my student athlete recruitable? Has the student athlete demonstrated through his/her high school academic career and test scores that he/she is able to be a successful college student athlete? Does my student athlete know what grades and test scores are needed for admission to the schools he/she is interested in?
• Has the student athlete prepared an athletic resume with supporting video? Is he or she competing in programs or participating in camps or workouts that will provide the student athlete the greatest exposure to coaches from the schools he/she is interested in? Have we visited theses schools to watch the team play?
• Do I know the best way for my student athlete to approach coaches at schools he/she might be interested in? Do I know when the student athlete should make these contacts? Do we know how to tell if a coach is genuinely interested in recruiting my son/daughter?
• Are we familiar with all the factors that impact the recruiting process? Do we understand that college athletics is a business and how this concept shapes the way coaches deal with my student athlete? Do we understand and accept that college coaches want to speak with the student athlete directly and not his/her parents? Is the student athlete aware that coaches will look at his/her social media postings?
• Do we know what to do when my student athlete receives an offer from a school? Do we know how to negotiate these offers and how to gain the most leverage in the negotiation process?

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The sooner you develop your own answers to these questions the greater will be your chances of getting admitted to the school that you want and receiving the maximum amount of financial aid.